Morning brought the ferry's arrival in Oslo. We
noted that Sven had
stocked up at the duty free shop. That aquavit is powerful stuff.

Sven recovered from his
big night and worked his magic with Sol, the Scandinavian sun goddess.
We docked at the head of Oslofjord and disembarked. Cerulean skies lit
our morning ramble through the city center.

Oslo City
Hall

We were amused to see a Burger King on every corner - but, shockingly,
no Starbucks. That was okay, as the local brew was more than
satisfactory. Not to mention pastries that aren't called "Danish" by
anyone but the Americans. We looked forward to our morning wienerbrød
(literally, Vienna bread). More walking was prescribed, lest the
contents of our suitcases become too snug for comfortable wearage.

Our walk took us along the city's waterfront, past
the Nobel Peace Center and a slew of historic buildings. Art was
everywhere.

We wended our
way to the Akershus Fortress in downtown Oslo. The fortress
contained a castle, ramparts, and the Norwegian Resistance
Museum.

The
Resistance Museum
was fascinating, if sobering. Sue got left behind and had to hunt
through the streets of Oslo, searching for the rest of the group. It was
actually kind of a fun adventure.

The ramparts provided a good vantage point
for taking pictures of the harbor.

The
highlight of the day was a trip to
Frogner
Park, location of Gustav Vigeland's sculpture park. Vigeland was an
artist and craftsman who devoted his life to the creation of the statues
that fill the park. Apparently, this all started with a fountain that
was supposed to go in front of City Hall. At some point, the whole thing
got out of hand, and the city gave the man an entire park to fill with
his large, anatomically correct statues.

We
were given time to explore the park at our leisure. It was a fantastic
day for a stroll amongst the fantastical artwork, which culminated with
a hike up to the large monolith in the center. People stood around it,
slack-jawed or whispering about what it might signify.

We took a bajillion pix
of the park - too many to put them all on one web page. Here's a
sampling in a
photo-gallery format. Click on any of the thumbnails to see larger photos. Be
warned: If you click, you're going to see statues of naked people. In
all their glory. It was sort of mind-blowing to see all kinds of folks wandering among these statues with nary a
blink. Back home, there would be letters to the editor, graffiti, and
general outrage. But not here. Ah, the joys of traveling.

Entrance

Jerry with the "Angry Child," one of the more famous statues

THE MONOLITH

Sue took advantage of the opportunity to do a little
sunbathing. Not very dignified, but oh so pleasant...

Refreshed, we boarded the bus for a climb up the local mountain. Our
destination: The Holmenkollen ski jump. Visitors are allowed to climb up
the tower and peer down the jump. This was made extra exciting by the
winds that howled around the upper reaches of the tower, making it shake and groan during the
walk up. It's hard to imagine how anyone would actually scoot out onto
the little perch and then just let gravity take its course. The
simulator ride at the base of the tower let us experience the thrill
without fear of the "agony of defeat."

It was
with some relief that we got back on the bus for the trip down.
We happily checked in to the Hotel Stefan and began our search
for the perfect place to have a pre-dinner social hour.

The next morning, we explored the Bygdøy
Peninsula, site of several appealing museums.

The Oslo Viking ship museum had some ships that were
much better preserved than the ones at Roskilde. The intricate carvings
were intact down to the most minute detail.

Jerry didn't believe that some of the statues in Oslo
were actually living, breathing human beings. Some of them were so
realistic that pigeons perched on their heads and arms. To prove the
point, Sue suggested throwing some kroner in the bucket at the base of
one of the statues. Jerry did, and the statue came alive! And shook
Jerry's hand! And saluted! Jerry says, "That's a little hoky." Well,
yeah. Amusing, the first time you see it. But what a way to make a
living...

These are Sue's favorite
pictures from the whole trip. No, it has nothing to do with her
childhood equine fixation!